Surreal celebrity Phil Spector was dealt a pretty devastating dose of reality this week. But it’s a tossup whether he found it more devastating that he was convicted of murder or that nobody seemed to care.
After all, his (first) murder trial began in 2003 with fanfare that rivaled that of O.J. Simpson. But it did not take long before the media began showing more interest in Spector’s wig fetish than in his fate. And nothing demonstrated how much his star had fallen quite like the media dedicating more time to rehashing the three-day-old story about the rescue of Captain Phillips than to covering the reading of his fateful verdict on Tuesday.
Spector of course is credited with defining the music of the 1960s with his Wall of Sound technique, which produced hit songs for everyone from The Beatles to Ike and Tina Turner. But if you have no clue who Spector is, or why his reversal of fortune is even worthy of comment, just imagine Timbaland hibernating for 30 years only to reappear as a suspect in the brutal murder of a cocktail waitress. (And if you have no clue who Timbaland is, congratulations, you’ve become your parents….)
At any rate, one night in 2003, Spector did what Hollywood moguls routinely do: he went out to a bar in Los Angeles and picked up a beautiful, struggling actress, Lana Clarkson, who, like so many others, was waiting tables while waiting for her big break.
No doubt when she finally realized who Spector was, Clarkson – who also fancied herself a singer – felt she’d hit the casual-dating / networking jackpot. In fact, so eager was she to seize this opportunity that she reportedly ignored initial qualms (and what woman wouldn’t have them in his case) when he invited her back to his Alhambra mansion.
Unfortunately, she was blissfully unaware of Spector’s proclivity for playing Russian roulette with groupies once he gets them inside his gilded cage. Although, to be fair, a few who survived the encounter testified that threatening to kill them was just his form of sado-masochistic foreplay.
At any rate, it seems a cruel irony that the booze Clarkson served him that night exacerbated his patented recklessness, which resulted in her death.
Spector claimed that a depressed Clarkson (40) committed suicide by putting his gun in her mouth and pulling the trigger. And, as ridiculous a defense as this was, it actually won him a reprieve when his first trial ended in deadlock in September 2007.
All the same, given the O.J. precedent, Clarkson’s family was probably grateful that Spector was not acquitted outright; because this enabled prosecutors to retry him again this year.
Not surprisingly, the judge revoked his bail after the jury rendered its verdict and Spector (69) was promptly hauled off to jail. He faces 15 years to life when he’s sentenced on May 29, which makes it highly unlikely that he will ever see the inside of his mansion (or another day of freedom) again….
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Desi says
Well written, but I will correct a few mistaken facts. Lana was not a “waitress”. She was hired as a hostess for the Foundation Room of the House of Blues. She did deliver a round of drinks to Spector, however. And, it’s been testified to (by Adrian DeSouza) that Lana was very resistant in going back to Spector’s castle. He pushed and pushed her and she finally gave in probably contemplating what lost career opportunity she may have here if she didn’t go.
Anthony L. Hall says
I take your points Desi. But as you probably know, much of DeSouza’s testimony was disputed. My characterization of her job and mood was based on reporting by the LA Times. All the same, I decided slight modification of one fact was in order. Thank you!
Desi says
Anthony, thanks for replying.
I think the case was concreted by DeSouza’s testimony, actually. The defense tried to dispute his testimony, but I don’t think it worked just as their other tactics did’nt in the end.
Desi says
Correction of my typo: Didn’t